What is a norm-referenced assessment?

A norm-referenced assessment specifically evaluates a student's performance by comparing it to the performance of a representative group of peers, known as the norm group. This type of assessment provides a way to understand how an individual's results stand relative to others in the same grade or age range. The purpose is to determine relative standing within a population, identifying where a student ranks compared to others.

This framework is particularly useful in educational settings for understanding a student's performance contextually, rather than solely in terms of absolute achievement. It helps educators identify how a student is performing relative to their classmates, which can be important for decisions regarding interventions or further educational support. Norm-referenced assessments are often used in standardized testing to classify students, guide instructional strategies, and assess overall program effectiveness.